23 June 2009

Vegemite

We are big on sandwich spreads principally because we have become accustomed to eating bread in the morning, and of course it helps a lot if there's something we can wedge between the bread slices! We love chocolate spreads especially. My wife, who is growing conscious of our increased food intake, would like to introduce healthier options into our diet. And so she bought Vegemite because she thought it, um, had veggies in it. She's partly right about that, of course.

Vegemite is made from leftover brewer's yeast extract (a by-product of beer manufacturing) as well as various vegetable and spice additives. The taste may be described as salty, slightly bitter, and malty — somewhat similar to the taste of beef bouillon. The texture is smooth and sticky, much like peanut butter. It is not as intensely flavoured as British Marmite and it is less sweet than the New Zealand version of Marmite.

Vegemite is popular with many Australians, who commonly consider it a national food and a cultural icon.[2] It can be found in shops around the world, particularly where there are large populations of Australian expatriates. Vegemite has not been successfully marketed in other countries, apart from New Zealand and to a lesser extent in the United Kingdom, and has failed to catch on in the United States, despite being owned by US food company Kraft Foods. When seen in the United States, the Vegemite label often does not contain the Kraft logo. (Wikipedia)

What a strange invention, this Vegemite is. I opened the lid and ventured to take a sniff. It does smell strange, for something that you put on bread. Nevertheless, I spread some on bread and gave it to Jo-Lo.

He took a bite and immediately stopped at first munch. It took him some time to swallow it and then he took it upon himself to get his own piece of bread and put his favorite chocolate spread on it!

My wife also noticed this and so she, too, took a bite. Like Jo-Lo, she stopped at first munch and her face got distorted somewhat. Intrigued by now, I took a bit myself.

It was salty! Too salty! And somewhat bitter too!

And I thought I will instantly like it because it's a beer by-product! This will take a lot of getting used to!